I use one dinner a year with my board to bring in
young, high-potential managers. We have everybody give an “elevator
speech.” You have three minutes to tell the board and other people in
the room where you came from, the challenges you’re facing and how
you’re trying to create value for the company. Everybody might want to
take 15 minutes, but you have to be succinct. This is part of what we’re looking for in people who have potential;
it’s all about communication. What are the challenges you have, and you
have three minutes to explain them, because there are 40 of you and
we’re going to be here all night otherwise. And if you take somebody
else’s time, that’s not respectful. It’s all about being succinct and
articulate.

Why do I like this technique? First, it provides the board an opportunity to interact with people who may become senior leaders in the organization in the future. They can begin to develop a relationship with these individuals. Second, it challenges these young leaders' communication capabilities. Can they be succinct, interesting, and engaging? Can they create a powerful conversation based on their three minutes of remarks? Third, it fosters the establishment potentially of some key mentoring relationships. Not only may the young leaders gather advice and counsel from board members, but the board members may learn a great deal by hearing from young people who come from a different generation and may be more similar to the firm's actual core consumers. Fourth, the invitation to present, in and of itself, offers a wonderful reward and recognition for these high performers. Yes, they would love to be paid well. However, these folks also care about their future career path. Having this opportunity certainly will be welcomed and may help retain top young talent. Finally, the board hears from voices other than senior managers about what is going on at the company. That can be important. Senior managers naturally filter information as they present updates to the board. Senior executivespresent information through their lens and perspective. Having a different voice and perspective talk to the board can be helpful.

1 comment:

Lovely post. Thank you for sharing. Would like to add that if looking for the alternatives to enhance leadership development, reach out to the companies catering services in order to advance leadership skills. These companies devising tools and procedures after analyzing the problem efficiently such that these factors are eliminated or minimized.

Michael Roberto

The Great Courses

About Me

I am the Trustee Professor of Management at Bryant University in Smithfield, RI. I joined the faculty after serving for six years on the faculty at Harvard Business School.

My research, teaching, and consulting focuses on leadership, with a particular emphasis on decision-making and teams. I have published two books based upon my research: Why Great Leaders Don't Take Yes For An Answer (2nd edition to be released in May 2013), and Know What You Don't Know (2009).